Every time I hear how domains are exactly like real estate, I shake my head at the dissimilarities. Comparing domains and domain investing to real estate and landlords is a convenient choice. Sounds familiar? It's because I covered the subject before, except for the landlord reference. In a recent message for a domain inquiry, the […]

Earlier this week I closed on yet another domain sale on the Uniregistry market platform. The agreement was reached last week, but a small glitch caused a short delay with the buyer's funds at Uniregistry. This single word .ORG domain was registered in 1999 and I acquired it a decade ago on NameJet. It's my […]

One of the reasons I moved my domain names to Uniregistry several years ago, is their knowledgeable support department. Uniregistry is now a GoDaddy company, and great days are looming ahead through this well-planned acquisition. Uniregistry remains an elite destination of choice for domain investors and end-users alike. It has a solid footprint in...

Domain investors, like millions of other professionals in the US and around the globe, are adjusting to the Coronavirus pandemic. The economy is taking a hit, but it's not the end of the road. There are plenty of opportunities to stretch your investments, and if you're looking for extended capital the federal government is getting […]...

This article is about how Sedo, SnapNames, and Afternic, helped me sell a domain name twice over the course of a decade, for several thousand dollars in total. During this Coronavirus pandemic, sharing positive news about the domain industry is a must! The domain market deals with intangible assets, and no-one needs to wash their […]

Congratulations. You just sold a domain name, and now it's time to rest on your laurels and forget about it allright? Wrong. Selling a domain name isn't the endit's the beginning of a grand new relationship with your buyer. It's the moment that presents the most potential you ever had with this domain, other than […]

There are many ways to show gratitude to others, and share your appreciation with them. In the case of strangers that never made it into each other's life, a "thank you" note goes a long way. A few weeks ago I shared a story about how I found a USB drive on a flight, located […]

Domain prices increase, and that's a fact of the industry's regulatory direction. A contract renewal by ICANN has given extensive rights to Verisign, managers of the .com and .net TLDs, to jack up prices at rates unseen before. Normally, ICANN is expected to regulate prices so that the public's interest in domain names is safeguarded. […]...

Having registered my first domain in early 1997, I took a minute to recall what has changed in the domain registrar industry since then. Network Solutions remained the only registrar during the first few years of the commercial Internet, but that changed quickly. As with every industry, once monopolies end and alternate options are introduced, [...

When traveling, whether it's to attend domain name conferences or for leisure, make sure all your digital devices are safe and secure. At the turn of the new year, I took a trip to Puerto Rico; a great place, where the food is delicious and the people and island waters are warm year-round. A rocky […]

Happy holidays. ‘Tis the season to be jolly, and while you allow the spirit of Christmas empower you, it's your own initiative that will carry you into the new year, 2020. In this time and era, domain names are increasingly establishing an indisputable role in how they shape brands. About time too. When I began […]

The sale of PIR to a newly formed entity that's not covered by the non-profit umbrella might have been widely accepted, if the timing were different. Weeks after ICANN decided to ignore more than 3,200 comments against provisions giving the green light to renewing the PIR contract with no price increase restrictions, the sale of […]

As a domain investor, when I sell a domain name through a third party platform, I'm eager to get paid for the digital asset I provided, as fast as possible. Our interconnected world offers a number of monetary exchange platforms that are designed to offer speed, security – and usually not both at the same […]

Closing on a five figure domain deal via Uniregistry's domain marketplace isn't new to me; I've been using the platform since its beta stages in 2012. In the past, I raved about the ability that Uniregistry brokers possess to turn dead-end deals into completed sales. This time around, the domain sold has been under Uniregistry […]...

Keeping a personal blog for a decade is easy, one can write whenever they have the time, or the inspiration – or the need to share something with the public. Doing the same for an industry publication that provides content daily with very few exceptions, requires an enormous commitment. It's no longer a "whenever" project, […]...

The majority of my domain buyers are corporations, start ups, and companies in stealth mode. I'm pretty sure the occasional proxy buyer managed to get a good deal, and as long as the price is right I would sell to a domain investor as well. All these categories of buyers have one thing in common: […]

During the past 20 years, I've seen a lot of attempts to justify making lowball offers for a domain name in my portfolio. The most common one seems to be that, since the domain hasn't been active for X number of years, nobody really wants it. My first thought and silent response, is always the […]

Arabic speakers account for more than 4% of the world, and almost 320 million people. The Arab culture is a mosaic of local traditions, with a long history going back thousands of years, and the intermingling of religions. Arabs are known for their ability to negotiate in commerce, and they anticipate negotiations to be part […]

When you own a quality generic domain name, such as Rub.com, it's important not to erase its potential. Generic domains that aren't developed suffer the consequences of an unforgiving Google, that clearly favors content over domain quality. To this day, many domainers regurgitate paradigms that no longer apply, unwilling to accept that the world ha...

When negotiating on a domain, the field is open wide. It's like a chessboard with two armies, the White and the Black. The game, however, has a mixed set of rules, and knowing how to best utilize both the spoken and the unspoken rules of engagement, can win you the game in very few moves. […]

The commercial registration and use of domain names goes back to the early 1990's. Since 1995, domain registrations are paid for, instead of being free, selective, and manual reservations. Today, more than 300 million domain names are registered, but not everyone agrees on their value and importance. A recent inquiry that arrived via the Uniregistr...

Jeff Gabriel announced his departure from Uniregistry, earlier today. Those of us that were made aware of this personal decision a few days ago, are reminded of a very important mantra in life: Family comes first. Jeff's moving back to his roots, to be closer to his family. For the past seven years, he's worked […]

A lot of domain investors facilitate domain sales basing their approach on how the real estate market operates. While there are similarities in this analogy, there are also differences which make the use of real estate an imperfect example to demonstrate how the domain market works. For example, realtors are licensed professionals that abide to [&#...

In May I wrote about how GoDaddy continues to send unsolicited offers for domains that are listed for sale on other marketplaces, with a BIN. What's the catch? For $69 dollars, GoDaddy brokers reach out to anyone with a domain. If a GoDaddy customer is hoping that the brokers there will perform some kind of […]

I wrote about this issue before, and it's obvious that GoDaddy and its team of brokers don't really care. At the very least, middle management at GoDaddy is not doing anything to address this issue, which they promote as a "Domain buy" service. GoDaddy's aggressive approach to relaying offers and collecting a fee without discrimination, […]...

During the past two weeks I experienced two attempts by scammers to steal domain names, by offering payments in cryptocurrency. These Bitcoin scammers offered to acquire premium domains by indicating they can only make payments in BTC. There is a reason why such methods of exchanging domains for money isn't supported by the Uniregistry Market. [...

When receiving offers for domain names, the exchange can become progressively interesting as negotiations unfold. Domain offers are often mere "pings" on a domain, to gauge its owner's activity, but some times they are honest inquiries with a random number tagged to them. The task of issuing a domain name quote is dependent on the […]...

Between 2001 – 2003 I was perusing dropped domain lists provided by one of the best paid-for services at the time, DomainsBot. Hundreds of dictionary domains were available, in .com, .net and .org. I scanned through thousands of domains, looking for worthy registrations. I think I hurt my eyes on a daily basis! Registering single […]

Happy New Year! For me, the new year began with plenty of domain offers and a solid mid four figure sale, via the Uniregistry Market. It's where I list my domain portfolio to invite inquiries. The negotiation was carried out through the Uni (former Uniregistry) checkout process. The "parking" of domain names with a BIN […]

Companies that launch new products and services often seek to register one or more associated domain names. The preferred choice is a dot .com, although the introduction of new gTLDs has given many companies a wide range of options. When a corporation wants to rename one of its subdivisions, or itself, the quest for the […]

Domain inquiries can lead to an exchange that indicates strong interest by the buyer. When strong interest is present, what's missing from the exchange is an agreement on the framework of the sale. That can be the price, or the promptness of the payment itself. The latter is as important as the amount involved; after […]

Registering domains as an investment means one thing: you should be prepared to hold onto your assets long term. The definition of "long term" depends on the exact domain assets you are holding onto. Sometimes, new trends emerge and give you the opportunity to close the circle, and sell these domain names profiting from the […]

When I acquired Algorists.com a decade ago, it was already pushing past puberty. Registered in 1989, this remarkably aged domain name represents an era that predates both the commercial Internet, and the World Wide Web. Now at the ripe age of 29 years old, Algorists.com has never expired, and carries its July 5th, 1989 registration […]

In February 1997, I registered my first domain name. It cost me $100 dollars for two years, and the registration took place through the only available registrar at the time, Network Solutions. As I lived in Greece, I also had to fax some information out. Domain payment was made via bank wire, although NetSol had […]

Creating a successful brand is a combination of wisely naming your product and services, and choosing one or more appropriate domain names. IP attorney, Erik Pelton, summarized the process very nicely in a recent podcast, "Six Steps in Building a Strong Brand." Sometimes I receive inquiries for domain names that for whatever reason feel compelled [...

I attended MERGE! 2018 in Orlando, for the second time that the conference took place. Attending a local event isn't necessarily an advantage, when one commutes daily to the venue. I spent 45-60 minutes on average getting to the Hilton in the Disney area. I'm certain that those who stayed at the venue hotel, enjoyed […]

Recently, I read through a discussion thread over at NamePros, about how a – presumably – Uniregistry broker filtered the lowball offers of the person complaining. In a nutshell, the broker wasn't presenting the offers to the domain's owner, because they were too low. In doing so, the complainant made a statement that the broker's [R...

MERGE! 2018 is coming up in Orlando, Florida; the conference spans September 14-19 with a full agenda. The core of the conference begins on Sunday, September 15th, and lasts until Tuesday, September 18th. That's when most domain investors and other industry professionals are expected to attend. Just like last year's conference, the event is a [R...

Negotiating on a domain name and selling it for thousands of dollars, can be a very exciting event. Domain investing has acquired an increased amount of reputation in recent years, particularly since there are great marketplaces to sell one's domain names on. Whether you choose the Uniregistry Market, Sedo, or Afternic, the goal is obvious: […...

It's not a secret that I hold domains long term. My early days as a domain flipper ended almost 15 years ago. A decade ago I attended TRAFFIC 2008 in Orlando, and my long-term holding approach of domain names was reinforced. Along with adopting the Rick Schwartz mantra of "the power of no," I became […]

I've been using the Uniregistry domain services since 2012, once domain parking and the selling platform opened to the public. As an early adopter of the platform, I helped test the services provided on their web and application, becoming an official beta-tester. No application is perfect, and it takes several programming cycles to create a […...

After almost 16 years of using Escrow.com to acquire and sell domain names, I'm finally testing new territory. Escrow Concierge is my option of choice, as it allows me to entrust Escrow.com with the domain name, all while receiving the funds faster. I prefer to close domain transactions quickly; past the negotiation cycle I'm eager […]...

Quite often, third parties inquire on behalf of an actual domain buyer. In the domain investing lingo, these are "proxy buyers" that have one mission: to maintain the privacy of the real buyer and their budget. Researching every inquiry as it arrives, has one prerequisite: do not set a BIN price for the domain. Assuming […]

As a long-term customer of Escrow.com I'm very happy with the quality of service they provide. Later this year, it'll be 16 years since I first used Escrow.com in a domain-related transaction, and while that makes me marvel at how fast time flies by, it reinforces my trust of the service. No matter how great […]

Recently, I've experienced an increase in a new type of claim when receiving domain inquiries. The other party states that they owned the domain name in the past, but they somehow lost access to it. In the cases I'm referring to, the claims are outright false. As I hold domain names long term and document […]

We're right in the heart of summer, and it's probably the slowest part of the year. During these summer doldrums, as Elliot calls it, it's good to expand on one's domain selling channels, and I'm currently using Uniregistry brokerage. The capable guys and gals at Uniregistry are going through hundreds of inquiries that did not […]...

Using a proxy buyer in an attempt to acquire valuable domains isn't exactly news. By utilizing a third party to negotiate the acquisition of a domain name, the actual buyer can save thousands of dollars. Not having to disclose the identity and true budget of the buyer, a good domain can be sold at a […]

The untimely demise of fashion designer, Kate Spade, serves as a reminder about personal success and the intricacies of personal life; never take either one for granted. Kate Spade's entrepreneurial acumen helped pave the way for many other women and men, to "go solo" against the establishment of large corporations, seeking professional success. Th...

Welcome to the brave new domaining world, devoid of actual WHOIS information. The GDPR is officially the most damaging bureaucratic concoction ever created about digital information, effectively dividing the Internet into two large zones: one available to Eurozone members, and one that can be accessed by the rest of the world only. Nobody wants to ...

With the upcoming onslaught of the GDPR – a European Union approach to data privacy that wasn't vetted by American organizations – the domain industry is about to lose yet another battle. So far, ICANN has been unable to come to a consensus regarding WHOIS policies under the GDPR. It seems that the lack of […]